Comments on: Why I Can't Live In Armenia (I'm Too British)

By: Cold Showers | fearghal o'nuallain.ie

Cold Showers | fearghal o'nuallain.ie — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 13:13:01 +0000

[…] I am not out in the cold on this. […]

By: Tom

Tom — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 10:49:37 +0000

If that’s true, I have yet to see much evidence of it. A group of guided Israeli tourists with video cameras and flashy bikes doesn’t mean that mountain-biking is a growing activity. I wish it was, because Armenia would be a fantastic country to explore by mountain-bike, as long as it was done with due respect for nature, using established trails rather than charging across virgin meadows as seen in this video. Sadly, respect for nature is not something that Armenian society in general is known for.

By: Ara

Ara — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 06:19:46 +0000

Actually, mountain biking is a growing activity in Armenia.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4U8SVJ-YtY

By: Tom

Tom — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 08:33:25 +0000

Hi Scott. Yes, I have.

By: Scott

Scott — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 16:35:40 +0000

Hello Tom.

I live in Yerevan and I’m a foreigner. Have you ever seen foreigners in Armenia?

By: Tom

Tom — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 05:27:35 +0000

I would have written ‘practically no mountain-bikers’ but it didn’t flow so well

It would be good to meet and organise some trips. I do know one other mountain biker here — funny you haven’t met him also.

The exhibition is open until 1st April. Let me know if you’re going and I’ll try and go down there to meet you. My number is 099 496914.

By: Alex

Alex — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 21:25:48 +0000

“There are no mountain-bikers in Armenia.”

Well, I wouldn’t be so categoric))
There are some…ok, at least, one! Funny, I’m a bit confused, how come, we never met in Yerevan…
If you like, we could organize a kind a trip together on one of coming weekends!

Check this out man: http://comte-de-varand.livejournal.com/413807.html
I’m in a helmet. Sorry, it’s in Russian.

P.S. Is the exhibition still open?

By: Adrineh

Adrineh — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:40:02 +0000

Tom Allen, @sacfunraiser and Darby Flynn: you might be interested in this American journalist/blogger’s thoughts on living in Yerevan: http://ashleykillough.com/

And yes, I’d say Yerevan has changed a lot since the 90s, though yes, the underlying attitudes are still the same. In any case, there are definitely more foreigners (expats, repats, tourists and immigrants) and I’d no longer say that Armenia is 99% ethnically Armenian. I don’t think wearing sneakers gets you looks, but being more fair-skinned and fair-haired might! There are lots of folks living here who are not from here or are not Diaspora Armenians (though there are plenty of us too!) and many keep blogs. I’ve met lots of Fulbright scholars and US Peace Corps volunteers, for instance.

In any case, it’s interesting to read different people’s perspectives, especially since I made the move from Canada to Armenia last summer

By: Tom Allen

Tom Allen — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 07:17:05 +0000

There are as many ways to travel as there are travellers, I guess. For me, the important thing at the outset was to see some of the world and have a great adventure on a mountain bike, for the sake of adventure itself and for the freedom to go anywhere at any speed from 20 to 200km a day. Round-the-world per se wasn’t the focus, but it seemed to be a good way to explain the idea to media/sponsors.

I think it’s good to have a goal of some sort, not necessarily for the final achievement but more because it can help give a direction to a process which can easily become lost and unfocused. I never intended to let the goal dominate my experience and attitude to the day-to-day act of travelling — I set no time limit and am very glad to not have done so. I know of plenty of people who did so and regretted it!

I think a variety of modes of transport would be great fun — walking and sailing are really appealing, and hitching is always an experience. Motorbiking’s probably not for me — too fast and I suppose not quite challenging enough at this age!

By: Darren Saunders

Darren Saunders — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 17:02:25 +0000

Hi Tom,

Just come across this site whilst looking for information on traveling the world by bike. I have read some of the articles you’ve posted with great interest and will continue to gather as much information from this site as I can.

A question if I may — from the outset, was it always going to be by bike or was it the circumnavigation that was more important? I have the desire to circumnavigate the world but by which means I’m still not sure of. I have considered: sailing (i did a trans-Atlantic crossing for some experience); motorbike — I think this is more complicated where paperwork is concerned, expensive and everything rushes past too quickly; mountain bike — looking at your site for more information and finally by foot/hitch hiking. In any case, I’m in no rush. It’s something I’d like to achieve but will not give myself a deadline to achieve it by.

Thanks,

Daz.